Worst Story of the Day: Father of Slain Marine Ordered to Pay Over $16,000 to Westboro "God Hates Fags" Freaks "Protesting" His Son's Funeral

Ordered to pay the costs of their legal appeal (over what, the article doesn't say, in an order which does not include reasoning or rationale.

- The father of a Marine killed in Iraq and whose funeral was picketed by anti-gay protesters from Kansas was ordered to pay the protesters' appeal costs, his lawyers said Monday.

On Friday, Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ordered Snyder to pay $16,510 to Fred Phelps. Phelps is the leader of Topeka's Westboro Baptist Church, which conducted protests at Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder's funeral in 2006.

The two-page decision supplied by attorneys for Albert Snyder of York, Pa., offered no details on how the court came to its decision.

Attorneys also said Snyder is struggling to come up with fees associated with filing a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court.

The decision adds "insult to injury," said Sean Summers, one of Snyder's lawyers.

The high court agreed to consider whether the protesters' message is protected by the First Amendment or limited by the competing privacy and religious rights of the mourners.

Maybe Gabe can explain this. My guess is that there is some law requiring challengers to someone's free speech to pay court costs, or else court costs alone could keep people from speaking freely.

But the father of a slain soldier shouldn't be bankrupted trying to vindicate his son's right to be buried with respect.

To that end -- He's accepting online donations to press his case, and maybe hopefully get a ruling against these bastards from the Supreme Court.

Thanks to kawfytawk.

&bodytext=Ordered to pay the costs of their legal appeal (over what, the article doesn't say, in an order which does not include reasoning or rationale. - The father of a Marine killed in Iraq and whose funeral was picketed by...&topic=world_news"> posted by Ace at 10:17 AM

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